The Arts · Grade 7 · Movement and Meaning · Term 4

Dance as Storytelling

Exploring how dance can communicate narratives, emotions, and abstract ideas without words.

• Ontario Curriculum Expectations
• DA:Cn11.1.7a

About This Topic

Dance as storytelling shows students how movement communicates narratives, emotions, and abstract ideas without spoken words. In Grade 7, they analyze dancers' facial expressions and gestures to identify feelings like joy or tension. They predict narratives from movement qualities such as sharp angles for conflict or flowing lines for harmony. Then, students design short dance phrases to tell simple stories, aligning with Ontario's DA:Cn11.1.7a standard for connecting dance to meaning.

This topic builds skills in interpretation, empathy, and creativity across the arts. Students connect body language to drama techniques and visual motifs, seeing dance as a universal language. It encourages systems thinking about how elements like tempo, level, and pathway construct meaning, preparing them for more complex choreography.

Active learning benefits this topic most because students embody emotions and stories through physical trial. When they mirror gestures in pairs or improvise phrases in small groups, abstract ideas become personal and memorable. Peer performances with feedback refine their expressive choices, boosting confidence and collaborative skills.

Key Questions

1. Analyze how a dancer uses facial expressions and gestures to convey emotion.
2. Predict the narrative of a dance piece based solely on its movement qualities.
3. Design a short dance phrase that tells a simple story.

Learning Objectives

• Analyze how specific gestures and facial expressions in a dance performance communicate a particular emotion.
• Predict the narrative arc of a dance piece based on its observed movement qualities, tempo, and dynamics.
• Design and demonstrate a short dance phrase that conveys a simple narrative using body language.
• Compare the effectiveness of different movement qualities in communicating abstract ideas.

Before You Start

Grade 6: Elements of Dance

Why: Students need foundational knowledge of space, time, and energy to effectively analyze and create dance that communicates meaning.

Grade 6: Expressing Ideas Through Movement

Why: Prior experience with using movement to represent simple concepts or feelings prepares students for the more complex task of narrative storytelling.

Key Vocabulary

Narrative Arc	The sequence of events in a story or dance, including the beginning, rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution.
Movement Qualities	The characteristics of movement, such as speed, force, flow, and shape, which can be used to express different ideas or emotions.
Gesture	A specific movement of the body, especially the hands or head, used to express an idea or emotion.
Dynamics	The variations in force, speed, and energy within movement, contributing to its expressive quality.
Abstract Idea	A concept or thought that is not concrete or tangible, such as freedom, loneliness, or conflict, which can be explored through movement.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

Dance storytelling relies only on facial expressions, not body movement.

What to Teach Instead

Body pathways, levels, and dynamics convey core narratives; faces add nuance. Active mirroring in pairs lets students feel how full-body commitment strengthens emotional clarity, correcting over-reliance through direct experience.

Common Misconception

Only trained dancers can tell stories through movement.

What to Teach Instead

Everyday gestures form the basis of dance narratives. Improvisation activities build student confidence, showing personal movements suffice when intentional; peer guessing games reveal universal readability.

Common Misconception

Fast movements always mean happy emotions.

What to Teach Instead

Tempo pairs with quality: sharp-fast for anger, smooth-fast for excitement. Group predictions from videos challenge this, as students debate and test contrasts in creation tasks.

Active Learning Ideas

Pair Mirror: Emotion Gestures

Pairs face each other across the room. One leads with slow facial expressions and arm gestures to show an emotion like sadness; the partner mirrors exactly. Switch roles after two minutes, then discuss what feelings emerged and why certain movements worked.

25 min·Pairs

Small Group: Narrative Prediction

Show a 2-minute dance video clip without sound. Groups of four predict the story by charting movement qualities on paper. Each member shares one prediction; groups present consensus to class and compare with actual narrative if available.

35 min·Small Groups

Whole Class: Story Phrase Creation

Brainstorm simple stories as a class, like 'lost and found.' Students create 16-count phrases using levels and pathways. Perform for peers, who guess the story; provide structured feedback on clear gestures.

45 min·Whole Class

Individual: Gesture Journal

Students watch solo dance excerpts and sketch gestures with emotion labels. Then, perform their own gesture sequence from journal for a partner to interpret. Reflect in writing on matches between intent and perception.

30 min·Individual

Real-World Connections

• Choreographers for musical theatre productions, like those on Broadway, use dance to tell stories and convey character emotions, often working closely with directors to ensure the movement aligns with the overall narrative.
• Silent film actors relied heavily on exaggerated gestures and facial expressions to communicate plot and emotion to audiences before the advent of sound, demonstrating the power of non-verbal storytelling.
• Expressive arts therapists use dance and movement to help clients process emotions and experiences, facilitating communication and healing through non-verbal means.

Assessment Ideas

Quick Check

Show students a 30-second video clip of a dance performance without sound. Ask them to write down three specific gestures or movements they observed and what emotion or idea they think each conveyed. Review responses to gauge understanding of gesture and emotion connection.

Peer Assessment

Have students work in small groups to create a 15-second dance phrase telling a simple story (e.g., finding something lost, a race). After performing for another group, the audience group answers: What story did you see? Identify one movement that clearly communicated part of the story and one that could be clearer. Provide feedback on clarity.

Discussion Prompt

Pose the question: 'How can a dancer use changes in tempo and level to show a character's growing excitement or fear?' Facilitate a class discussion, encouraging students to use examples from their own movement explorations or observed performances to support their ideas.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do movement qualities help convey dance stories?

Qualities like sharp versus smooth, fast versus slow, and high versus low levels signal narrative elements. Sharp, low movements suggest tension or danger; flowing, high ones evoke freedom. Students analyze clips to map these, then apply in phrases, seeing how combinations build clear plots over 50 words of practice.

What role do facial expressions play in dance narratives?

Facial expressions amplify emotions within movement stories, making abstract ideas relatable. A furrowed brow with hunched shoulders deepens sorrow. Viewing tasks train students to notice subtleties, while performance feedback helps integrate faces with bodies for cohesive expression, around 60 words.

How does active learning support dance as storytelling?

Active learning engages kinesthetic intelligence, essential for non-verbal arts. Mirroring exercises let students feel emotions physically, while group improvisations encourage risk-taking and iteration. Peer interpretation provides immediate feedback, solidifying how choices communicate; this embodied approach makes concepts stick better than passive viewing, fostering creativity and empathy in 70 words.

How to assess student dance storytelling phrases?

Use rubrics for clarity of narrative arc, use of qualities, and emotional expression. Video self-reviews or peer checklists focus on gesture effectiveness. Portfolios of sketches and reflections show growth in connecting movement to meaning, aligning with curriculum expectations over 55 words.